After first rest day of season, Braves set to host hard-hitting Guardians

Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss was happy his team finally got a day off on Thursday.

The Braves opened their season with 13 straight games and kick off a three-game homestand against the visiting Cleveland Guardians on Friday.

"I've never seen anything like 13 games in a row to start the season," said Weiss, whose team won eight games in the season-opening gauntlet. "We talk about confronting the challenges of a major league season, and we had one right out of the gate and the guys met the challenge right on."

Cleveland also had a day off on Thursday. Slade Cecconi (0-1, 5.23 ERA) is the expected starter against Atlanta. The 26-year-old right-hander was stellar in his last start on Sunday when he pitched six scoreless innings and gave up one hit and one walk with six strikeouts in a no-decision of a 1-0 home setback to the Chicago Cubs.

Atlanta counters with Bryce Elder (1-1, 0.00 ERA), who has covered 13 innings in his two starts without giving up an earned run. Elder is tied for the major league lead in ERA and is 11th with a 0.85 WHIP.

He was a hard-luck loser in his last start, as he pitched seven innings, allowed four hits and two unearned runs while striking out eight in a 2-1 setback to the host Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday.

After a three-game skid, the Braves took the final two games of a three-game set with the host Los Angeles Angels by winning the rubber match 8-2 on Wednesday. Because they scored 15 runs in their last two games, Weiss is optimistic the Braves' offense has started to round into form, even as it waits for Austin Riley to heat up.

The Braves third baseman has a .200 batting average, three RBIs and has yet to homer in 13 games. Riley's last two seasons were cut short due to injuries. He had season-ending core surgery last August and fractured wrist in 2024.

A return to the form he showed when he hit 33, 38 and 37 home runs in the three-year stretch from 2021 through 2023 would be a welcome addition to the Braves' lineup.

"I'm not worried about Austin," Weiss said. "He's headed in the right direction. When you get off to a slow start to the season, it catches a lot of people's attention. If this happens in June, no one blinks an eye. When you are coming out of the gates, the averages are skewed because you don't have at-bats."

Cleveland won two of three home games in its last series against the Kansas City Royals. The Guardians coasted to a 10-2 win on Wednesday as they pounded out 16 hits led by Angel Martinez's 4-for-5 performance that featured a double, a grand slam and four RBIs.

"It's fun for Angel," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. "He has been working tremendously hard. He worked hard in the winter, and we saw it in the spring a little bit."

Rhys Hoskins was 3-or-4 with three doubles and an RBI. Because of Hoskins' approach at the plate, Vogt said he is an instrumental cog in the Cleveland lineup.

"Rhys is a professional hitter," Vogt said. "The patience, the lack of chase, the ability to think along with pitchers and ability to go along with the Rolodex of what he sees. ... A lot of at bats, he's ready to go and swings at the right pitches. Having him in the middle of the order makes the lineup longer."

--Field Level Media